Thiruvananthapuram: The controversy over the proposed visit of Lionel Messi and the Argentina football team to Kerala, which never happened, has opened a new front, with the Special Investigation Team (SIT) set to probe alleged attempts by the previous LDF government to shield the sponsor from action over tax evasion.
The probe will examine the roles of a former minister, the additional private secretary of another former minister, two senior GST officials and another senior official who is a close relative of a CPI(M) leader in Kannur.
The Tax Department detected in June 2025 that Reporter Broadcasting Company, the sponsor, had evaded ₹ 22.68 crore in service tax on the sum of ₹126 crore transferred abroad in connection with the proposed visit. Despite ignoring all five summons issued from August last year onwards, the company faced no action. Instead, the department kept on extending the deadlines for its appearance whenever the sponsor sought more time.
The company finally appeared before the authorities on August 3 this year, after the new UDF government stepped in and issued a summons on July 30.
Meanwhile, attempts were also made to wind up the case by issuing a show-cause notice to the company. A report submitted by the Kanhangad Intelligence Officer to the GST Commissioner on July 27 stated that the action was merely in compliance with the principle of `natural justice’.
Finance Wing probes spending, documents
The Finance Inspection Wing has also launched a separate inquiry into the efforts to bring Messi and the Argentina football team to Kerala and the financial transactions linked to the proposed visit. The move follows complaints received by the Chief Minister and other ministers.
As part of the inquiry, officials have begun collecting information from the Sports Department and the complainants and have asked the department to submit documents related to the transactions. They have also sought details of the Spain visit by the then Sports Minister V Abdurahiman and his team, including the expenditure incurred on the trip.
The Finance Inspection Wing has also flagged discrepancies in some of the documents. For instance, the minister had stated in the Assembly that there was no memorandum of understanding (MoU) for bringing Messi to Kerala. A verification of the email correspondence, however, indicates that an MoU did exist.
